CASEY MITTELSTADT - Center - 20 - $.925MM Cap Hit - RFA in 2020-2021
LAST UPDATED 6/25/19
Famous for having an atrocious performance at the bench press at his draft combine, Casey Mittelstadt has blossomed into one of the most promising center prospects in the NHL. He has incredible puck skills, speed, and hands. He's adept at pulling off fancy dekes and generally amazing the crowd. He can play wing but he's more experienced as a center, and although his faceoffs were brutal in his rookie year he still looks like he'll stick as a center long-term. Mittelstadt struggled in his rookie season to adjust to a league that was bigger, faster, and most importantly, stronger than what he was used to. As a result, Mittelstadt had a poor rookie season scoring-wise. He simply is not big enough or strong enough to consistently win battles for pucks and that lack of strength impacts his ability to maintain possession of the puck and create space for himself to be a playmaker. He still has incredible upside given his raw offensive talent, but that upside will never materialize into actual scoring unless he can bulk up. As of right now, he's not quite a fit in a 3C or 4C role, but he doesn't score enough to make him a quality top-6 center, so it's likely best for his development that he gets demoted to the AHL and has a ~100 point season there centering the first line in Rochester, so he can build confidence and learn how to score in a professional league. He still has elite #1 center upside, but there are definite obstacles to him getting there.
Famous for having an atrocious performance at the bench press at his draft combine, Casey Mittelstadt has blossomed into one of the most promising center prospects in the NHL. He has incredible puck skills, speed, and hands. He's adept at pulling off fancy dekes and generally amazing the crowd. He can play wing but he's more experienced as a center, and although his faceoffs were brutal in his rookie year he still looks like he'll stick as a center long-term. Mittelstadt struggled in his rookie season to adjust to a league that was bigger, faster, and most importantly, stronger than what he was used to. As a result, Mittelstadt had a poor rookie season scoring-wise. He simply is not big enough or strong enough to consistently win battles for pucks and that lack of strength impacts his ability to maintain possession of the puck and create space for himself to be a playmaker. He still has incredible upside given his raw offensive talent, but that upside will never materialize into actual scoring unless he can bulk up. As of right now, he's not quite a fit in a 3C or 4C role, but he doesn't score enough to make him a quality top-6 center, so it's likely best for his development that he gets demoted to the AHL and has a ~100 point season there centering the first line in Rochester, so he can build confidence and learn how to score in a professional league. He still has elite #1 center upside, but there are definite obstacles to him getting there.
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